Fairy Glen staged a dramatic reversal of fortunes in the Qatar Prix de Royallieu, turning a last‑place position into a victory over the odds‑on favourite Sunly and delivering a Group One triumph for the Newmarket training partnership of Simon and Ed Criswell. The five‑year‑old mare, under the guidance of jockey Mickael Barzalona, was settled at the rear of a solidly paced field that also featured Consent, Cameo, Sugar Island and Amelia Earhart. As the race unfolded over the demanding distance of one mile and six furlongs, Fairy Glen began to make her move, delivering a relentless challenge down the home straight. Sunly, who had been backed into favouritism at 5‑6, seized the lead with a furlong left to run.
Yet Barzalona timed his run perfectly, guiding Fairy Glen wide and late to snatch the lead by a neck at the finish. Amelia Earhart, the St Leger third‑placer, held on for third place, finishing three‑quarters of a length behind the winner.
The victory carries added significance for Fairy Glen, who is slated for retirement at the close of the season. Earlier in the spring she captured the Group Two Balanchine and the Dubai Gold Cup at Meydan, and she had placed fifth in the Prix Vicomtesse Vigier behind Caballo De Mar in May. A recent second‑place finish in a Listed race at Yarmouth served as a useful warm‑up for the Qatar contest. After the race, Ed Criswell reflected on the plan: "Exactly what Mickael said would happen did happen – he said they'd get racing a long way out.
He knows her very well from Dubai and wanted to take his time with her. They did get racing a long way out, he was following Sunly through and she's a game filly. She's never going to win by two or three lengths, but she gets the job done." He added that Fairy Glen "should have won at Yarmouth a couple of weeks ago" and that the Yarmouth run was her first after a summer break, deliberately kept uncomplicated to preserve her for the target race.
Criswell praised the mare, noting, "She's a really good filly and she's won a Group One. She will be retired at the end of this year, whether there's another race for her… she is in at Ascot (on Champions Day) and there might be something back here. We'll talk to her owner, but we might be able to fit another race in before she goes to stud." The prospect of a final outing at Ascot or a home‑based race remains under discussion. The report also turned to another notable performer, Wimbledon Hawkeye, who continued a promising first campaign for owner George Scott by winning the Qatar Prix Dollar at Longchamp.
The son of Kameko, a former Royal Lodge victor for James Owen, was acquired privately by the Victorious Forever operation during the off‑season. Since then, he has justified the investment with a Group Three win at Deauville and a narrow defeat to Hotazhell in the Irish Champion Stakes.
Ridden again by Christophe Soumillon, Wimbledon Hawkeye proved the class of the field, securing a half‑length victory over Zaydann in the Group Two contest. Scott praised his horse, saying, "He's a class horse – he's proven that time and time again this year.
He was a bit fresh beforehand and I was a bit apprehensive how fresh he was, but he travelled into it like a really good horse." Although his odds for the Qatar Racing Champion Stakes were dramatically reduced, a run on Ascot's Champions Day is not in the plans. Scott explained, "I think he'll be perfect for Bahrain.
Shaikh Nasser has put his foot down, there'll be no Champion Stakes. I want to do what the boss wants to do and he's right – we want to take a fresh horse to Shaikh Nasser's home. He was bought for Bahrain so this is all a bonus really. I'll give him a week in the field when he gets home and the Bahrain International is going to be the perfect race for him." Regarding his partnership with jockey Christophe Soumillon, Scott admitted, "It's cool to be associated with Christophe.
He's not someone I know very well and I've had a bit of a man crush on him since he started riding! He's got that charisma like Oisin (Murphy) and Frankie (Dettori) – they're just one‑offs." Overall, the Qatar Prix de Royallieu delivered an exhilarating narrative: a seasoned mare defied expectations to claim a Group One title in her final season, while a rising star continued to build a reputation for versatility and class across Europe and the Middle East. Both stories underscore the strategic planning, patient conditioning, and the fine margins that define top‑level flat racing today.